The Embassy of Finland in Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of Finland’s oldest development cooperation partners. The Finnish Embassy opened its doors in Addis Ababa in 1965, and bilateral development cooperation began in 1967.

Ambassador Helena Airaksinen

Today, the Embassy handles tasks in a number of different sectors. Foreign policy and national security, development cooperation, consular services and bilateral economic relations are all essential to the Embassy’s work. The Embassy is responsible for Finland’s relations with Ethiopia, South Sudan, Djibouti as well as the African Union (AU), the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

Foreign Policy and National Security Following and influencing the work of the African Union, analyzing the conflicts and supporting the peace processes in the Horn of Africa, and monitoring the political situation in the region’s countries – Ethiopia in particular – is done as part of the European Union and also through bilateral talks.

Finland’s Development Cooperation with Ethiopia is implemented according to Finland’s development policy and country strategy. Intergovernmental development cooperation is focused on the sectors of education, rural water, sanitation & hygiene and agrarian economic development & land governance. Finnish development cooperation has been proven effective in a number of evaluations and parliamentary field visits. Finland also engages in development cooperation in South Sudan when the security and development situation allows. Three is also some small-scale regional cooperation between Finland and IGAD. In addition to intergovernmental cooperation, a number of support mechanisms are in place for civil society and cooperation between institutions and the private sector. Finland also delivers humanitarian aid to the region.

The Embassy provides Consular Services to Finnish citizens and residents and handles visa and immigration matters. The number of Somalian asylum seekers in Finland increased in 2015 as part of a general increase in international migration. The family reunification applications of Somalian citizens are submitted at the Finnish Embassy in Addis Ababa.

The Embassy supports Finnish businesses interested in Africa’s economic potential through the Team Finland framework.

The Embassy of Finland is located next to the headquarters of the African Union. I assumed my duties at the Embassy on September 1, 2016. There are certainly interesting times ahead in the relations between Finland and the Embassy’s countries, not forgetting continent-wide developments. I look forward to working with a diversity of actors. My aim is to promote joint efforts in all the sectors mentioned above. Let’s be in touch!